1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the in-depth inspection of objects which may hitherto have been examined as flat. The addition of an extra dimension replicates the human eye and contributes to a sense of depth, and adding valuable information for the inspection of diverse objects, in this case railroad ties and track. These objects can be instantaneously compared and sorted against three-dimensional (3D) templates which may reflect the ideal for that particular object. With advanced object recognition software inspection can be done at high speed and with great accuracy. The images can also be compressed in real time for high-speed transmission for remote display or analysis, or sent for compact storage. This invention is here applicable in the visible, infra-red, microwave and ultra-violet portions of the spectrum. It may apply also to sonar or ultrasound.
2. Description of the Related Art
Because rail inspection has traditionally been done by “walking the tracks”—which is to say by a person carrying a notepad and visually assessing such items as missing bolts and damaged rails, it has been slow. It has been dependent on the visual (3D) acuity and judgment of the individual. In many areas of the world it is still done that way. Recently, more advanced techniques which depend on several cameras affixed to specialized rail-mounted trucks have been used. Their recorded (2D) images of ties and tracks are later examined and compared by individuals in their offices. However the transfer of data, the interpretation on charts and maps, can still be laborious and lengthy. There are also time-consuming tactile approaches.
A more complex approach to railroad inspection is possible through laser scanning. In the instances where laser scanning is used (such as on jet turbine blades) the technology requires highly reflective (i.e. specular) surfaces and computer reconstruction to create (measurable) 3D images. In the present instance such specular surfaces do not obtain from rails or ties for the creation of 3D images. Laser scanning is also computationally expensive and reconstruction to create 3D images is lengthy.
There are 140,000 miles of standard-gauge mainline track in North America with twenty-two million standard length rail sections riding on half a billion ties. Some of these units are more than fifty years old. A single track failure can be catastrophic for passengers, goods, equipment and environment. With shipping increasing as well as cargo loading, continuous examination of this rail and its maintenance is a very necessary task. It is no longer thinkable to do any part of this by “walking the tracks” or even by running slow-moving trucks that can interfere with rail traffic. In addition there are a further 160,000 miles of lesser-used tracks to monitor.
What is required is a simple, robust, fast inspection system which is self-contained and can be easily mounted on any railroad carriage, freight-car or engine. It should travel at normal speeds and be remotely monitorable. It should also be low-cost initially and easy in maintenance.
In the present invention we have the opportunity to achieve these ideals. We have the opportunity to restore the visual (3D) acuity of the original track-walker, accelerate the imaging, greatly reduce the cost and all-but eliminate interpretive error. In due course—within a time-frame measured in months rather than years—this invention can provide the storage (and the instant retrievability) to identify and track every single tie and rail section of the entire railroad system, while using integral GPS coordinates for their precise location.
We are enabled in this endeavor by the immense recent increase in computing power, storage capacity and communication ability in electronics, easing our (major) tasks of assembling the 3D components and contributing the algorithms to make it feasible.